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Tuesday, May 13, 2014

The Supplement Pyramid And A Book Give-Away!

...Vitamins and minerals have much more potential than simply eliminating nutrient-deficiency disease. When dosed appropriately, they can make the difference between surviving and thriving. - Michael A. Smith, M.D. in his new book "The Supplement Pyramid" on page 56.

Dear Readers,

Last month the Life Extension sent me a copy of "The Supplement Pyramid" book through their Life Extension Blogger Program, hoping that I might write a review. I also received additional copy that will be given away, free of charge, to a random reader of this blog. To participate in the draw you have to leave a comment and share this post on social media. The decision will be made on May 23rd. One lucky reader will receive the book by mail.

When the publication of this book was announced I couldn't wait to lay my hands on it since nutritional supplements play a great role in my personal anti-aging program. I take the best nutritional supplements on the market but sometimes wonder if I am taking enough or if the ones I am taking are right for me. This book turned out to be incredibly helpful in optimizing my personal longevity routine and now I have the honor to review it for you on my blog.

In radiant health - Dominique Allmon

~ The Supplement Pyramid ~

Here comes a book that perfectly suits my anti-aging philosophy: "The Supplement Pyramid" by Michael A. Smith, M.D. Just like Dr. Smith, I believe that supplementation is vital if you want to stay fit and healthy until old age.

This is a very important book and I believe that each household should own one. Dr. Smith not only clarifies the need for nutritional supplements, but also explains what supplements to take if we want to prevent premature aging and degenerative disease. His comprehensive supplement pyramid system will help the reader to assess his or her personal nutritional needs and choose the right supplements.

Supplementation is what it is - a supplementation - and should not replace good nutrition and a healthy lifestyle. Good nutrition and a healthy lifestyle, however, may not be enough for most of us because of all the changes that took place in our environment. The quality of soil, for instance, dramatically changed over the last 50 or 60 years. The depleted soil produces crops with diminished nutritional value. Moreover, we are exposed to hundreds of environmental toxins and many of us suffer from chronic stress. Our bodies have great difficulty coping with the burden and need help.

High quality supplements are indispensable! They can help us nourish our bodies, reverse premature aging and prevent disease, and Dr. Smith teaches us how to choose supplements that will do the job.

"After all there is no such thing as one-size-fits-all supplement regimen." - Michael A. Smith, M.D. in his book "The Supplement Pyramid" on page 27.

The concept of pyramid is not a new one. Most people are familiar with nutritional pyramid that was created to optimize daily nutrition. In the same way the Supplement Pyramid is a guide to optimally personalized supplementation regimen. It consists of three levels:

Foundation Level - includes four nutritional building blocks that everyone must take: high quality multivitamin and mineral formula, Omega-3 essential fatty acids, CoQ10, and probiotics. All these supplements are essential to life and are necessary for survival.

PersonalizationLevel - includes all the supplements that an individual has to take in order to manage an existing disease or prevent diseases that he is susceptible to because of his own or his family medical history. Supplements in this level differ from person to person since everyone has a different medical history and a different genetic makeup.

Optimization Level - includes all the supplements that can be taken to optimize health and slow down aging. They include herbs, additional antioxidants, amino acids and other nutrients that may help us stay healthier and live longer.

The Personalization Level is probably the most revolutionary aspect of this book. It helps the reader assess his or her own individual nutritional needs.

To find out what supplements one should take, Dr. Smith provided readers with specific tools:

Personal and Family Medical Inventories

17 Medical Quizzes

Laboratory Testing

All these tools combined give a reader a very clear picture about his or her own health challenges and the necessity of specified supplementation.

If you have health issues or if there is a disease history in your family you will be amazed how incredibly important it is to assess your predisposition to ailments and diseases. As you fill out the inventories, answer all the quizzes and evaluate the results, you receive a clear picture of your own physical and mental condition. At this stage you also learn what supplements to take in order to prevent particular disease you may susceptible to. But your Personalization Level does not end here. Dr. Smith provides you with a list of specialized blood tests that help you find our what exactly is going on in your body.

A standard blood panel may give you a general idea about your health but will not tell you much about inflammation in your body, your hormone levels or your sensitivity to different foods.

Once you evaluated results from medical inventories, medical quizzes and specialized laboratory tests, you will be able to create your own personalized supplement regimen. Dr. Smith suggests that readers re-take the quizzes and blood tests after six to twelve months of supplementing with specific nutritional supplements as the supplements usually help alleviate many conditions and may no longer be necessary.

If you want to live a long and healthy life you should take your supplementation regimen into the next level. Dr. Smith calls it the Optimization Level. It is an anti-aging level, par excellence. It includes nutrients that will help you:

reverse your biological clock

preserve cellular energy production

prevent glycation processes in your body

reduce inflammation

reduce oxidative stress

restore hormone levels

Dr. Smith calls the supplements in this level of your personal pyramid "the icing on the cake." They should be taken after you have established your Foundation and Personalization Levels.

Most authors will tell you what to take when you want to prevent a disease. Dr. Smith, however, tells you what to take if you or a loved one already has a disease. Chapter 7 of his book is dedicated to specific diseases. There you will find examples of supplement pyramids that were designed to alleviate symptoms and improve health of those who suffer. Certain nutrients may indeed speed up the healing process and should be taken is suggested doses.

To help the readers establish their personal supplemental routine Dr. Smith added case examples including his own. I find this is very helpful as it shows the reader how to choose the right supplement when there is more than one that a person could take.

Once you have designed your personalized supplement pyramid and are ready to invest money in your health, you probably wonder how to find a high quality, unadulterated supplement that really works?

Here again, Dr. Smith is quite unique. He explains what to look for when you are buying supplements and how to distinguish good supplements from the inferior ones. He devotes the whole chapter of his book to this subject and believe me, you will be so much wiser after you read it. And that's not all! Dr. Smith provides you with a list of trusted supplement companies. This information is invaluable as it will save you time and money and protect you from scams.

At the end of the book in the Appendix B you will find description and suggested doses of all the nutrients that were mentioned in this book. This information will help you decide whether a particular nutrient is right for your condition.

Conclusion

Most people have no idea that they can improve their health and alleviate many conditions with high quality nutritional supplements. "The Supplement Pyramid" empowers readers to take control of their own health and provides them with a tool that allows a very individual approach to health and nutrition. In my opinion, this important book should be kept for reference in each household.

To learn more about personalized supplementation, please visit The Supplement Pyramid website .

Disclaimer: I discovered Life Extension years ago and use many of their products. Last month I decided to join Life Extension Blogger Program because I am convinced that more people should learn about their research and the products they are offering. From time to time, as a participant of the blogger program, I will receive products and write about them on my blog. I am not an employee of Life Extension and do not receive any remuneration for my writing.

*This information is for educational purposes only. It is not meant to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

After reading this amazing book review you wrote Dominique, I have come to realize that at this time in my life I really need to include supplementation in my diet along with the healthy foods I have included. I know that as I get older it has become more difficult to feel as good as I can without supplements. I realize a multivitamin simply is not enough with the amount of stress I have been under these past few years. It can really take a toll on one's health and well being. I would really love to read this book. I know it would be life changing for me. I can imagine a more positive road ahead with healthier living. Thank you so much for taking the time to write this article. It is so appreciated.

Your article was definitely something I needed to read today. I have been under enormous pressures lately and I feel the stress I am experiencing daily have hurt my health and simply eating well no longer can cut it. I do realize I need to include supplementation in my diet. I used to take a handful of supplements years ago. I remember how much better I felt and now that I am getting older I need them all the more. Stress can really take a toll on one's health. I appreciate you taking the time to write such a great article. Thank you so much. This would definitely be a book that I would love to read and refer to often.

I am so glad to see you here, Liza. You are so right! Supplementation makes a big difference, but most people do not know how to use nutritional supplements. The Supplement Pyramid is absolutely amazing. I learned so many new things. I also discovered that I wasn't wasting my money on useless supplements.

Dominique, I posted the first comment thinking it didn't go through and posted another one just in case. I am glad to see they both went through! Thanks so much for responding. I believe you're right, everyone needs to read a book that will help them figure out what they need supplement wise that is right for their bodies. What a great way to do this by using quizzes. Thanks again for writing such a great article. I am hopeful that many of my friends will also read it.

I am thrilled that you found your way here and hope you will find my articles helpful and interesting.

Healthy nutrition, pure water, exercise, proper relaxation, and a positive outlook on life, are the crucial elements that act in synergy to sustain our mental and physical health. To a great degree we are responsible for our own condition.

Our bodies have the most remarkable ability to heal themselves. Sometimes even small changes in lifestyle can reverse conditions that seem to be hopeless. We just have to stop doing what harms us.

It is possible to live a long, healthy and productive life. It is possible to slow down the aging process and take years off your face.

Nutritional supplements and state of the art skin care can help you feel and look younger longer. Positive attitude will help you enjoy your journey even more.

The greatest revolution of our generation is the discovery that human beings, by changing the inner attitudes of their minds, can change the outer aspects of their lives. - William James

Don’t wait until everything is just right. It will never be perfect. There will always be challenges, obstacles and less than perfect conditions. So what. Get started now. With each step you take, you will grow stronger, more skilled, more self-confident, and more successful. - Mark Victor Hansen

The nutritional ignorance in our culture is astounding, and as long as such ignorance remains so widespread, we will never achieve a health care system that's both effective and affordable. As long as our doctors remain nutritionally illiterate, we will never have a health care system that values educating patients about what they put in their mouths. - Mike Adams

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